Year of the Spark: February 7 to 12
by Sparky Army
Summary: What happens when Elizabeth starts having disturbing dreams involving John? What happens when Elizabeth and other members of the expedition fall ill? What happens when people start dying? Can John save Elizabeth before it’s too late? Multichapter fic!
1. Chapter 1

_We, the Sparky Army, decree 2008 to be the Year of the Spark. We pledge to post a new sparky story or chapter of a sparky story every day from January 1, 2008 to December 31, 2008. Though the Powers that Be have removed Elizabeth Weir from the regular cast of __Stargate Atlantis__, we feel that she remains an integral part of the show, and that the relationship between her and John Sheppard is too obvious to be ignored. We hope that you, and anyone might happen to read these works, agree. _

And if that isn't official enough for you, we don't know what is. Seriously, guys, we're just trying to have some fun--and show TPTB that Sparky is the way to go. So sit back and enjoy the 366 stories coming your way! 

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**Disclaimer**: Not mine…if they were, I'd be rich, TPTB wouldn't be and Sparky shippers and Elizabeth fans would be happy!  
**Note**** from author (Stargatecrazy)**: This is _mainly_ from Elizabeth's point of view but it isn't first person (so when she isn't awake we don't know what's going on). It is mainly John and Elizabeth but there is a nice dose of Carson and Rodney. (Not much of Teyla or Ronon though because I find them harder to write-sorry) Enjoy this angst filled fic. (Yes more angst!)

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**Dark Dreams**

_By Stargatecrazy_

--Fear is the dark room inside you where negatives are developed.

_She entered his quarters. There was a small slit of light coming from where the curtains just failed to meet. The rest of the room was hidden in shadow. There was no sound. Nothing, except for the quiet drip of liquid. It was so quiet she wondered if she was even hearing it at all. _

_Dreading what was coming, she carefully stepped around the bed in the middle of the room. She headed towards the noise. Closing her eyes she took the final step and breathed in deeply. _

_She could smell it now. She could smell the destruction. She could feel a sense of evil on the floor in front of her. With one more breath she opened her eyes. There he was. Laid in his own blood and decay. His wrists were slit and the Atlantean point of origin symbol had been cut into his chest. The blood from his injuries pooled on the floor beneath him._

_On the wall written, in what could only be blood, were the words, '__The __fear of death is more to be dreaded than death itself but the fear of a friend's death is to be dreaded severely.__'_

_She looked down at her hands. They were covered in the scarlet fluid. The blood. His blood. And in her right hand she held a dagger covered in the same crimson liquid. She did the only thing she could in that situation, she screamed._

She woke covered in a cold sweat. Her hands gripped the soaked bed sheets and her skin tone was a couple of shades paler than it should have been. Frantically she turned her hands over checking them for any trace of her nightmare. There was nothing.

This was the fifth night in a row. For five nights she had seen the dead body of John Sheppard. For five nights she had feared that her nightmares might come true. For five nights she had feared that she would kill him. For five nights Elizabeth Weir had not had a proper night's sleep…

As the memory of the dream flooded back to her, like it always did, Elizabeth threw back the covers of her bed and ran into her bathroom. For the fifth time in those five nights she emptied the contents of her stomach into the toilet. It was here where John found her, five minutes later after receiving no response from her radio. She was still bent over the toilet heaving for all she was worth.

"Elizabeth! What's happened?!" John crouched down next to her and held Elizabeth's hair from her face as he gently rubbed her back.

Eventually there was nothing left for Elizabeth to throw up and she sat with her back against the toilet, silent tears flowing down her cheeks, not even acknowledging John's presence.

"Elizabeth?" John whispered.

The concern in his voice almost made Elizabeth heave again. John got up from his place next to her on the floor and got her a glass of water which Elizabeth took gratefully.

"I…" John looked back at Elizabeth as she started to speak. "I keep having nightmares John. Not the normal ones everyone has about the Wraith but….I…I walk into your quarters….and….and" she started to choke on her tears.

"Shh," John sat down next to her again and for the second time that night gently rubbed her back. "It's okay Elizabeth. It's alright."

He reached over and pulled her to him. Elizabeth leant her head on his chest and forced herself to hold back more tears.

"As I walk into your quarters," she carried on. "I hear dripping and walk to the other side of your bed and...you're...on the floor…in a pool of…blood with…your wrists slit and an Ancient letter – it looks like the Atlantean point of origin symbol - calved into your chest. I look down at my….my….hands….they're covered in blood too. On the wall…there are words written in the blood…..and when I…when I….look down at my hands again….there…there's a dagger in them covered in blood too. I killed you John….me. I…"

She burst into tears again. John sat with her as long as she needed. Softly whispering words of comfort and brushing her curls away from her face when they fell against her cheeks. Seeing her this way made his heart break and he wished there was more he could do to comfort her.

John looked back down at Elizabeth and noticed that she'd fallen asleep in his arms. He smiled to himself. Maybe he could get Carson to prescribe her some sleeping pills. If sleeping pills would help. It upset him that she wasn't sleeping properly and having nightmares. Nightmares so terrible that it made her physically ill. But what upset him the most was the fact that he was involved in Elizabeth's torment. It made him feel as if it was his fault.

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_Sorry it's a short start. The chapters differ in size but are mostly large! So yey! Lol. And I promise. This does get better!_


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

Elizabeth woke; feeling as if someone had pulled out her eyes and rubbed them against a cheese grater before putting them back in upside down. The skin around her eyes was sore and she realised that she must have cried herself to sleep.

She sat up in shock as she remembered falling asleep in John's arms. Elizabeth mentally cursed herself. She hated people seeing her when she felt vulnerable. She smiled. At least it had been John, not someone else. And his warm arms around her had been so comforting.

Getting out of bed she got ready for the day ahead. After showering and getting dressed, Elizabeth picked her radio off the stand next to her bed. By chance she glanced at the digital clock and swore as she read the time.

"11am? Damn!" Fitting her radio onto her ear and grabbing her laptop from her desk, Elizabeth rushed out of her quarters, towards the control room.

Elizabeth half walked, half ran to the control room, gaining surprised looks from people in the corridors. As she entered she heard the end of a conversation between Rodney and John.

"She's going to be really mad at you, Sheppard." Rodney was saying, checking something on his tablet.

"Only if she finds out it was me and she's not going to find out, _is she_, Rodney? Elizabeth needs the sleep; it's not like she's missed anything this morning."

Elizabeth walked up behind John and smiled. She did feel a lot better after a good sleep. She couldn't yell at John for that. "I take it you're the reason why my alarm didn't go off this morning then?"

John spun around to face her, startled by Elizabeth's presence. He smiled sheepishly. "Morning Elizabeth."

"John?" She raised her eyebrow and John winced.

"Yes?" He looked so innocent and Elizabeth had to force herself not to laugh.

Elizabeth sighed and shook her head. She waved her hand at John, telling him to forget about it, and headed into her office. Before the glass door slid shut she heard the beginnings of another conversation between John and Rodney.

"Why do you never get in trouble with her?" Rodney whined.

"Because, Rodney. Just, because." Elizabeth smiled as she saw John smirk at the annoyed scientist.

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Elizabeth had been working on reports for the last three hours. In her hand she held the core of what was once an Orple. It was a type of fruit which had just been found on the mainland. After it had been deemed safe to eat it had become a favourite in the mess hall and Elizabeth's favourite fruit. They tasted like a cross between and orange and an apple, and tasted surprisingly delicious, which is why Sheppard had name them Orples.

She threw the Orple core into the bin next to her desk and tried to return to her task of reading reports. Her head felt fuzzy and she couldn't focus on the words. Deciding that all she needed was fresh air, Elizabeth left her office, heading towards the balcony behind the control room. John was sitting next to Rodney, who was doing…something, and looked incredibly bored. Ronon and Teyla were visiting the Athosians for a few days, meaning that there were no missions for Sheppard's team.

As Elizabeth passed them, the ground seemed to move in front of her causing her to stop and raise her hand to her forehead. She suddenly felt very hot. From the corner of her eye she saw John get out of his seat and walk towards her. Everything seemed to be merging together in one big blur. Something unexpectedly exploded in her head, creating a burst of pain. The last thing she remembered as the world around her faded out, was the muffled sound of John calling her name and a pair of strong arms catching her before she hit the floor. It suddenly went black.

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The smell of disinfectant assaulted her senses as she started to wake up. Sounds of machinery grew louder, as did the sound of people whispering near by. It was obvious that she was in the infirmary. Wincing in pain, Elizabeth opened her eyes. Everything was blurry but she could make out the figures of three people standing at the foot of her bed.

"She just fainted?" Elizabeth could make out Carson's Scottish brogue.

"Yeah, she looked like she was going to go out on the balcony but she stopped and sort of swayed, like she was feeling dizzy. Then she collapsed." She could tell that John was concerned.

Her throat was dry and hurt when she tried to speak. Instead she tried to sit up; wincing in pain once again as her body protested.

"Elizabeth?" Rodney noticed her failed attempt first.

The three men walked over to her. John looked like he was going to reach for her hand but as his eyes flicked over to Rodney and Carson he decided against it. Carson pulled out his penlight and Elizabeth winced in pain for the third time that day as the sharp light hit her eyes. Realising he was hurting her, Carson pulled away.

"I ran some blood tests after Colonel Sheppard brought you in here. Nothing noticeable has been detected but I've got people double checking them. Physically you seen fine. I couldn't tell you why you collapsed." John poured out a glass of water from a jug on the bedside table and passed it to Elizabeth as Carson finished speaking.

"How long have I been out?" She asked, her throat still soar, but noticeably better after the water.

"About two and a half hours." John replied.

Elizabeth closed her eyes briefly. Her head hurt, although there was a considerably less amount of pain than before she had collapsed. Elizabeth tried to get out of the infirmary bed, ignoring Carson's objection.

She failed for two obvious reasons. The first reason being that her body still screamed in unexplainable pain; the second reason being John Sheppard. He laid his hands on her shoulders and pushed her gently back down. When he removed his hands, Elizabeth found herself missing the strange warmth John's hands had brought her, despite the uncomfortable ache they'd caused.

"Elizabeth, we still don't know what made you collapse. We've got to keep you in the infirmary." Carson admonished.

"But I feel fine!" She was lying and she knew Carson could tell.

Gently, Carson prodded her arm. Before she could stop herself, Elizabeth gasped in pain. John looked concerned, yet confused.

"For some reason that we can't discern, your body is extremely sensitive to touch. So sensitive that it causes your nerves to react in a way which makes your brain believe you're in pain. You're not leaving the infirmary Elizabeth."

Elizabeth sighed in defeat. Satisfied, Carson and Rodney left; most probably to look over her blood work again. Elizabeth looked up at John who hadn't moved. Once again he went to take her hand, but then remembered what Carson said and thought better of it. Elizabeth smiled and grabbed John's hand, regardless of the pain it caused. Once again she felt the odd sense of warmth.

"Elizabeth. I know this is a stupid question, but how are you feeling?" Elizabeth smiled again.

Ignoring the pounding of her head which was gradually getting worse Elizabeth answered the question. "I feel fine, John."

At his disbelieving look Elizabeth closed her eyes and exhaled. "John I really don't want to talk about it."

John smiled sadly, spoke, "We'll figure this out 'Liz'beth. Get some rest," and left, leaving Elizabeth once again longing for the warmth he brought.

Watching him go, Elizabeth closed her eyes sadly and fell into a restless sleep.

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_So there's chapter two. Liking it so far? See this was longer than the first chapter wasn't it?! lol_


	3. Chapter 3

_She__ entered his quarters. But this time it was different. As before a small slit of light lit the room from where the curtains just failed to meet. But unlike before the rest of the room wasn't hidden in shadow but instead, was bathed in an abnormal, white light. The quarters were full of laughter. Hiding the quiet drip of liquid she knew was there. _

_Knowing, as she always did, __what was coming, she carefully stepped around the bed in the middle of the room. The laughter increased. Taunting her; tormenting her. Closing her eyes she took the final step and breathed in deeply. _

_She could smell nothing. It felt unnatural. Everything smelt of something. She could feel no sense of evil this time. She opened her eyes. There he was. On the floor, in the position he was usually in, yet there was no blood and his eyes were open. His wrists were slit and the Atlantean point of origin symbol had been cut into his chest just like always but no blood poured from his wounds. _

_On the wall there were no words written in blood. And when she looked down at her hands they were normal. No crimson liquid; no dagger. When she looked back up, he was standing; grinning inanely. He took a step towards her, grabbing her roughly, a hand on either side of her face, and pulling her lips to his. _

_It was wrong. This wasn't the John she knew. Just like everything else, it felt unnatural. 'John' pulled back and sneered before backhanding her across the face. Not ready for the blow, she fell to the floor. 'John' jerked her back up again, grabbing her jaw violently. He mouthed something at her that she couldn't understand. The laughter ceased._

"_I'm going to kill you." Now she knew it wasn't John. It wasn't his voice. It sounded too inhuman. His face changed slightly; becoming harsher, uglier somehow. _

_He threw her to the floor. When she opened her eyes, after closing them on impact with the ground, she saw a dagger in front of her. Not just any dagger, the one that had always been in her hand; covered in John's blood._

_She picked it up. As 'John' lunged for her, she stuck it up into his stomach. Instead of groaning in pain, he laughed. As he fell to the floor words began forming on the wall. She couldn't understand them. They didn't make sense. They were words of a language she had never seen before._

'_John' called her name. It was no longer the inhuman voice, but the warm, caring voice of the real John Sheppard. She looked down noticing that his face was back to normal. She knelt down next to him. He reached up and held his hand against her cheek. Tears made their way down her face as he slowly caressed her face. Blood was once again pooling on the floor beneath his body, soaking her knees red. With a final breath, John's hand fell, limp, to his side. She felt for a pulse and upon finding nothing, she cried loudly. _

_In the distance she could hear someone scream._

Elizabeth woke sharply, realising she was the one screaming. Once again she was covered in a cold sweat. John was by her bed side and had obviously been trying to wake her because as soon as he noticed her eyes were open, relief passed over his face. Her face was wet with tears and once again her body ached painfully.

Elizabeth gasped and reached for John, holding on to him as new tears fell. He held her close, gently rubbing her back and holding her head to his chest. "It's alright Elizabeth. It's alright." He shushed her softly.

Eventually her tears slowed to a stop but Elizabeth refused to move from John's comforting embrace. The infirmary was dark indicating that the medical staff were probably asleep. There were other patients in beds opposite her, who were falling back to sleep after being awoken by her screams. She couldn't remember that many people being in the infirmary when she was awake earlier.

"John?" Her voice sounded foreign to her ears. It was hoarse from her throat being dry.

"Yes?"

"What's happened?" She asked referring to the other people in the infirmary.

John looked behind him at the sleeping figures in the room and sighed. "Apparently, the same thing that's happened to you, 'Liz'beth. They're all showing the same symptoms; a number of identical nightmares, nausea, being extra sensitive to touch. Beckett's trying to figure out what the problem is. But one thing he's found is that you all have the same blood type."

"I don't like this John." Her voice was shaky and her eyes were beginning to sting.

"Neither do I, 'Liz'beth, neither do I."

Both of them knew that the conversation was over yet neither of them moved away; content in each other's embrace.

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"Do you think we should wake them?"

"I don't know. I'd love to see the look on Sheppard's face."

As Elizabeth drifted into consciousness she could hear both the voices of Rodney McKay and Carson Beckett.

"Aye, but what about Elizabeth's."

Fully awake, but still tired, Elizabeth kept her eyes closed. She was still in her infirmary bed but someone else's body was draped over hers. Elizabeth knew it was John. She had her arms wrapped around his back and his hands were still on her back and head. She breathed in, inhaling his scent.

She felt John stir on top of her and realised he was waking up. "It looks like we won't have to wake them up Rodney."

Elizabeth opened her eyes slightly, so that she could see what was happening. John groaned. Elizabeth guessed that his body was stiff after falling asleep in that position. She watched as John sat up and groaned again. He blinked and rubbed his hands over his face before he noticed Rodney and Carson smiling at him. His eyes flicked from the two at the end of the bed to Elizabeth and back again. Elizabeth had to force herself not to smile as realisation dawned on John's face.

"I…we…this is _not _what it looks like!" John stuttered as he remembered where he'd fallen asleep and who with.

Rodney snorted in laughter and Elizabeth could just about see the glare that John directed at the scientist. John continued to try and explain. "She woke up after another nightmare, I comforted her. That was it; nothing else. I must have fallen asleep."

Rodney let out another snort of disbelieving laughter. John stood up, albeit stiffly, and stepped threateningly closer to McKay. Elizabeth decided to make her presence known.

"Gentlemen." She tried to speak sternly, but it came out more like a cough.

"Elizabeth." Carson, who had come up next to her, handed Elizabeth a glass of water, which she thanked him for.

Elizabeth flicked her eyes over to John and Rodney, who had thankfully stopped bickering, and then turned to face Carson.

"Have you made any progress, Carson?"

"Aye. We have. Underneath ultra violet light, blood from people who are infected shows a certain protein marker. We took blood from those who don't have the same blood type as you, such as Colonel Sheppard and a mixture of people who do or don't have the ATA gene. It turns out that the gene stops you from being affected but only if it occurs naturally. Everyone else on Atlantis, including those with the artificial ATA gene, has this marker in their blood." Carson explained.

Elizabeth's brow creased in confusion. "You said everyone on Atlantis has this marker except for people with the Ancient gene?"

"Aye. But it only affects people who have AB negative blood, so thankfully not as many people will fall ill, with it being the rarest blood type. But unfortunately it's still ten percent of the expedition."

Elizabeth pulled herself up into a more comfortable sitting position. "Could this possibly be another outbreak from one of the Ancient labs?"

"No. I've checked and double checked the quarantine system. It's all in working order. If this was a proper virus we would be in a lock down by now." Rodney explained with out looking up from the tablet he had seemed to produce from nowhere.

Elizabeth suddenly raised her hand to her head. She felt fuzzy again and had to fight the urge to throw up. John was the first to notice her discomfort and reached out to steady her. Elizabeth grabbed his hand and buried her face in his arm. She swallowed, hard.

Taking a deep breath, Elizabeth pulled her head back from John's arm and spoke. "Do you have any idea as to what's caused this?"

Carson shook his head. "Your guess is as good as mine, lass. We don't think it's something from off world though. And Colonel Sheppard has suspended any 'Gate travel."

Elizabeth looked up at John and smiled. He didn't smile back. Instead he was looking across the room at one of the other patients in the infirmary. The man in question, a marine, had started to convulse. John's grip on Elizabeth's hand tightened slightly.

Carson yelled for his nurses and ran over to the marine, pushing him down on the bed in an attempt to stop the man from hurting himself. The marine started retching, making Carson yell at everyone to get back. The marine coughed, blood splattering the bed sheets.

The marine, Sergeant Baston, Elizabeth realised, rolled onto his side in an effort to get out of the bed.

"Everyone stay back. We don't know if he's dangerous." John yelled as one of the nurses had stepped forwards to help.

Batson hit the floor, landing on his wrist with a sickening crunch which made Elizabeth look away. When she returned her gaze, Batson had stood up. He was muttering about Atlantis and the Wraith. He doubled over, vomiting over the infirmary floor before he suddenly threw himself at Carson. Thankfully the doctor had been pulled away only seconds before by John. Elizabeth was surprised, not having noticed John leaving her.

Batson fell to the floor, lying relatively still except for the occasional twitching of an arm or leg. Elizabeth watched as John let go of Carson and the doctor cautiously approached Sergeant Batson. He rolled him onto his back and checked for a pulse in the marine's neck. Carson's eyes widened.

"What is it Doc?" John had moved to the other side of the marine.

"He's dead." Carson started CPR compressions on the man's chest.

"Doc, leave it. You know it won't do any good." Carson stood up reluctantly and motioned for a couple of male nurses to take the body away.

"This isn't good." Rodney spoke from his shocked position by the infirmary door where he'd obviously been considering running from the potentially dangerous scene.

The scientist walked back over to Elizabeth's bed. Carson and John copied his actions; John discretely taking Elizabeth's hand in his again.

"No really, Rodney?" John replied sarcastically. Elizabeth noticed John's hand tightening around hers and bowed her head slightly to hide her smile.

"Rodney's right, John. We had no idea that this virus could result in death. This is much more serious than previously thought."

"Well, shouldn't you be trying to find something to cure it then?" Rodney's head shot up at John's comment. The two men looked at each other until Rodney backed down in understanding.

"Right…Carson?" Rodney grabbed Beckett's arm and they left John and Elizabeth alone.

John's eyesight followed them. "Hey? Are you alright, John?"

He turned his head back to Elizabeth. He locked eyes with her and she could feel the heat of a blush forming on her cheeks. "I'm fine, 'Lizabeth. Just worried."

"It'll be fine John." He raised his eyebrows. "John. It'll be alright. There's no need to worry."

John sighed, frustrated. "Elizabeth. A man just died! How can you expect me not to worry about y- it?"

"Nice cover." Elizabeth smiled as John winced. She grabbed his hand with both of hers.

"I would leave you to get some rest, but I don't want to leave you alone." He grabbed a chair from a nearby desk and sat down next to Elizabeth's bed; his hand never leaving hers.

Elizabeth sighed but settled down to sleep anyway. The last thing she remembered before drifting off to sleep was John pressing a kiss to the back of her hand.

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_Okay, any of the medical garb in this I've just made up. So if there are any obvious mistakes…sorry!_


	4. Chapter 4

Elizabeth sat up straight. She blinked a couple of times before remembering she was in the infirmary. John was next to her in an instant; hand rubbing soothing circles on her back. Elizabeth breathed in deeply.

"Are you alright? Was it another dream?"

Still slightly confused, Elizabeth shook her head. Turning to face John she answered him.

"No." She hurriedly continued as John looked concerned. "I mean yes I'm fine but I didn't dream. At least not one that I can remember."

Elizabeth looked down at her hand, which she was surprised to see was still held by John. She looked back up at him, her surprise clearly showing on her face as John quickly pulled his hand back.

"Did you hold my hand the entire night?" John rubbed the back of his neck, a trait Elizabeth noticed he did when he was nervous, and nodded.

Elizabeth grinned. "Thanks. I appreciate it."

John sat down on the chair behind him and passed a tray up to Elizabeth. "Here, breakfast."

As Elizabeth ate her cereal, John continued to munch on an Orple. Elizabeth knew they were his favourite fruit too. Something suddenly occurred to her.

"John?" He looked up; acknowledging her. "When were the Orple's passed as safe to eat and allowed in the Mess Hall?"

John remained silent for a moment; thinking. "I think it was just under a week ago."

Elizabeth bit her lip. She raised her hand up to her ear in an attempt to radio Carson before realising she hadn't had her radio since she'd first collapsed in the control room.

"John, give me your radio." John passed it to her obediently, asking why she needed it as he did so.

She didn't answer him. Instead she carefully fit the radio to her ear and tapped it.

"Carson?" She heard the affirmative 'aye' though the ear piece and carried on. "Carson. I think it's the Orples that are causing the virus."

"_Those bizarre apple fruits that __Major Lorne found on the mainland?"_

"Yeah. I just have a…a hunch. It's possible isn't it?"

"_I suppose. I'll find Rodney and run some tests."_

"Okay. Thanks Carson." She tapped the radio again before handing it back to John.

John looked at her expectantly but Elizabeth was deep in thought and didn't notice.

"Hey." John laid his hand on her shoulder, causing Elizabeth to jump slightly. "Are you _sure _that you're alright?"

Elizabeth nodded and smiled, covering the hand on her shoulder with her own. "Yes John. I…"

John help up a hand to stop her; mouthing sorry as he touched the radio in his ear. Elizabeth could just about hear the Canadian rambling on the other end.

"Yes Rodney. Yeah I…no, Rodney. I'm coming…yes…McKay!! Thank you. Yes, I'm on my way."

Elizabeth raised her eyebrow as John stood up, taking her finished breakfast of her lap as he did so. "Rodney's found something that indicates the Orples could have something to do with all this."

He looked hesitant. Elizabeth's second eyebrow rose to join the first. "John?"

"Yes?"

Elizabeth gestured with her hand towards the infirmary door. "Oh, yeah. I'm going. Um, are you gonna be okay?"

Elizabeth rolled her eyes and sighed. "Yes John! For the last time! Now go."

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_I know this is really short! Sorry but I could find no other way to break the fic up. The next chapter is longer! I promise!_


	5. Chapter 5

Elizabeth was bored. She wanted to be in her office, working on reports and sorting out requisition forms. She couldn't just lie in her infirmary bed. She knew she was ill and should remain where she was but they wouldn't even let her have her laptop.

She threw back the sheets and swung her legs over the side of the bed. After checking that there were no doctors around, she lowered herself to the floor. Hissing through her teeth as her bare feet hit the cold ground, she ignored the pain.

Elizabeth made it to the door, looking behind her to see if anyone had noticed her absence. Stepping around the corner, Elizabeth crashed into something. Looking forwards she realised the something was a someone. The someone grabbed her shoulders to stop her from falling backwards. Elizabeth noticed the flight suit and winced.

Looking up slowly she spoke. "Hello Colonel."

"Doctor Weir? Shouldn't you be in the infirmary?" Caldwell made sure she was steady on her feet before freeing her shoulders.

"Well…would you believe me if I said I was released?" Elizabeth could hear the hopefulness in her voice and cringed. She'd been spending too much time with John.

Caldwell was about to answer when Colonel Sheppard and Rodney McKay walked round the corner, followed closely by Radek Zelenka and Carson Beckett. John ran forwards as soon as he noticed Elizabeth standing in the hallway.

"What's happened?"

"Nothing, John. I…"

Carson interrupted, pushing his way past Rodney to stand level with John. "What do you bloody well think you're doing out of the infirmary?"

Elizabeth didn't answer. There was no point. Instead she obediently allowed Carson to lead her back to her boredom.

Once Elizabeth was settled back into her bed, everyone, including Caldwell, gathered round. Slightly annoyed at being caught, Elizabeth crossed her arms in font of her and tilted her head to the side.

"Well you were right, Elizabeth." Carson started the conversation. "Now we knew what to look for, we discovered something in the juice of the Orples."

"The same protein marker is present in the Orples. We don't know how they only affect people with a certain blood type, but they are completely harmless to anyone else." Rodney intervened. "Carson, Radek and I are going to start working on a cure to the Orple's affects."

Elizabeth uncrossed her arms and ran a hand through her hair. "You said that people with the Ancient Gene aren't affected?"

"Yes, from what we can tell, since the Orples are indigenous to this planet, the Ancients had an immunity to them and that immunity has been passed down to their descendants which is why Rodney has the marker but Colonel Sheppard doesn't." Radek answered her question.

"Well, could you create something from my or your blood." John said, facing Carson.

Carson nodded. "It will probably be the easiest way."

"How long do you think it'll take to develop this cure then?" John asked and Elizabeth didn't miss the concerned glance he shot in her direction.

"A couple of hours at the least. We'd better start on it now. The sooner the better." Carson replied, following Rodney and Radek to a different part of the infirmary.

Elizabeth looked at the two men who remained standing next to her. Neither John nor Caldwell looked like they were going to move soon. Elizabeth rolled her eyes and mentally sighed. The two colonels were standing completely still, eyes locked, challenging each other. Elizabeth was about to speak when Caldwell received a transmission in his radio.

"Doctor Weir," he nodded to her pleasantly before looking at John and speaking more coldly. "Colonel Sheppard. I'm afraid I must return to the Daedalus. There have been a few technical problems and I'm needed."

Elizabeth smiled as Caldwell tapped his ear piece and a second later vanished in a flash of white light.

"What was that about, John?" Elizabeth narrowed her eyes admonishingly.

John's face was nothing but innocent. "John? Are you going to answer me?"

"It's nothing, Elizabeth. Just leave it." Elizabeth was going to continue trying to coax the answer out of him when a noise from the bed opposite hers distracted her.

The woman, a scientist whose name escaped Elizabeth, started to convulse. As she coughed, blood splattered onto the sheets. Unconsciously, Elizabeth grabbed John's hand as a couple of marines ran over to restrain the woman. John had decided to post marines on the infirmary door after the first few casualties had proved to be dangerous. The woman screamed vomiting over herself and the two soldiers before falling still. Silence followed.

"How many is that now?" Elizabeth's voice was much quieter than she wanted it to be.

"Eleven." John replied, slowly rubbing his thumb across the back of her hand.

Elizabeth looked up at him. She blinked, trying to rid her eyes of the tears that were forming. John glanced down at her, his face neutral and she knew he was trying to hide his unease at her situation.

"It's gonna be alright. Beckett and McKay will sort this out. Everything's gonna be fine." John was saying it to reassure himself, not just her. "You're gonna be fine 'Liz'beth."

Elizabeth's other hand joined her first, holding John's hand tightly. She could tell he was really worried about her. He looked down at their joined hands and smiled sadly. Elizabeth had no idea how long they stayed like that; content with each others company.

Silently John brought a hand up to her cheek. She closed her eyes and leant into the warmth his palm generated. Elizabeth felt his other hand move a stray curl back behind her ear and cursed herself as she sighed softly.

The sigh broke the moment. John coughed uncomfortably and pulled back, embarrassed.

"John?" Her voice was uncharacteristically quiet.

"I'm sorry, Elizabeth...I...I better go see how they're doing." He turned and left heading over to the section she'd seen Carson, Rodney and Radek enter earlier.

Elizabeth looked after him longingly.

---------

_Only one more chapter to go!_


	6. Chapter 6

_I sort of just felt like explaining the whole John/Caldwell confrontation. For some reason I've always thought that Caldwell might have a crush on Elizabeth or something and John knows it but Elizabeth doesn't. Don't ask me where I get these ideas from. lol. And I wanted to write that in because it made the chapter longer. Now on with the last chapter:_

A great pain was growing in her chest. She had no idea how long it had been since John had left and at this moment she didn't care. She fought the urge to throw up, releasing a small whimper as she curled into a small ball. Her head felt like it was going to explode and her whole body had erupted with burning fire.

Elizabeth could hear heavy footsteps running towards her, but ignored the instructive shouts telling her she needed to sit up. Eye clenched shut; she was too busy concentrating on fighting the battle inside her body to listen to the demands of some stupid doctor.

She screamed as the pain suddenly increased. She could just make out the sounds of someone yelling her name. The anguish in the voice made her eyes snap open as she recognised John's soft tones.

"John!!" She cried out.

She felt a small pain in her arm but it was minimal compared to what the rest of her body was currently experiencing. Something burst in her chest and she had the sensation of falling. Everything went black but not before she heard someone, John, scream her name.

------

"Hey." Her eyes fluttered open to be met with hazel ones staring back at her.

She groaned. She tried to ask about what had happened but all that came out was another groan. John seemed to understand anyway.

"You were starting to convulse but we managed to inject the cure into you and it worked almost instantly." He explained. "So how are you feeling?"

"Like I've been hit by a wraith stunner. A really big wraith stunner." John smiled at her attempted humour. "I'm guessing the cure worked then?"

"Yeah. Everyone who had the marker in their blood, affected or not, has been given it. All of the other patients have been released but Carson wanted to keep you here for a few days."

Elizabeth rolled her eyes dramatically and snuggled down further into the bed. Looking at John, something suddenly dawned on her.

"John?" He nodded in response. "How long have you been sitting here?"

He fidgeted nervously in his chair before telling her that he hadn't left her bed side since she'd received the cure.

"And how long ago was that?"

"Twelve hours…" he trailed off. Elizabeth grinned; shaking her head.

They were interrupted as Carson came to check up on Elizabeth after noticing she was awake.

"John. Go get something to eat and get some sleep. I'll be fine."

"Aye." Carson agreed. "Go take care of yourself. Elizabeth is in no danger."

John looked at Elizabeth and something about it made her shiver. Then he turned and headed out of the infirmary.

"Right, lass. Let's have a look at that arm."

Elizabeth jumped in shock as Carson checked the plaster cast on her right forearm for any cracks. She had been too caught up with talking to John to notice it before. At her questioning look, Carson explained.

"Just after you were injected with the cure you had a violent spasm and fell to the floor, breaking your arm in the process."

"When can I get out of her Carson?" She asked a little too tiredly for her liking.

Carson pulled out a penlight and answered as he shone it in her eyes. "As soon as I say you can. No arguments."

Elizabeth sighed but sat back and agreed, allowing Carson to check her over.

-----

She found him on their balcony, leaning on the railing, staring at the glistening ocean.

"Hey." He spun around in surprise as she held out a permanent marker. "Sign my cast?"

He smiled and took the pen but didn't move any closer to her outstretched arm.

"I found something in the data base. About the Orples." Elizabeth let her arm drop to her side and joined John by the railing, all thoughts about signing her cast forgotten.

"And?"

"I know why you were having nightmares." Elizabeth noticeably flinched at their mention.

"The Orples affect people mentally as well as physically. I don't know how the Ancients know all this if they were immune but the Orples bring out your worst fears. Something about linking to the subconscious and a lot of technical stuff I didn't understand." John went silent, watching her face as she thought about what he'd just said.

"I'm afraid I'm going to kill you?" Her forehead wrinkled in confusion.

"I don't think so. At least not directly anyway." Elizabeth remained confused. "You said I…the me in your dream had the Atlantean point of origin symbol on his chest?"

Elizabeth nodded. "Elizabeth you're afraid of 'Gate travel. Afraid that I…members of the expedition won't make it back through the Stargate. And since you send them on missions, you think it's your fault. I talked with Carson and he agrees that that's probably why the Orples affected you slightly differently than everyone else."

Elizabeth turned away from him. "I'm glad you're okay 'Lizabeth."

He walked past her but before he reached the balcony doors she called out. "John?" He turned back around. "You still haven't signed my cast."

He smiled and for the first time in days it reached his eyes. He held her arm with one hand and pulled the lid off the pen with his teeth. Holding her arm steady, he wrote his message. Elizabeth's eyes never left his face.

When he finished, John took the lid from his mouth and recapped the pen, after letting go of Elizabeth's arm. Looking up he found his gaze locked with Elizabeth's. She leant forewords and placed a soft kiss against his lips.

"What…what was that for?" He asked shocked.

"Everything, John. I don't think I could have managed this week without you. Thank you."

John smiled and placed his own kiss on Elizabeth's lips. "Read your cast Elizabeth."

The flyboy grin was back as he handed her the pen and then strode through the doors to the control room. Feeling stupid for grinning as much as she was, Elizabeth looked down at the black writing on the white of the plaster encasing her arm. If it was possible her grin got even larger.

'_I don't know what I'd do with out you. Get well soon Lizzy! Always yours-John'_

Apart from the fact that the message made her heart swell with joy, Elizabeth knew she was going to have to kill John for calling her Lizzy.

Smiling contentedly, Elizabeth left the balcony wondering if John would continue to dot the 'i' in her name with a little heart.

The End

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_Yey the end! I hope you enjoyed the first multichapter YotS fic. Sorry there was no proper closure but I just didn't think it would work!__ And as an explanation to the strange warmth Elizabeth felt when John touched her-as John explains, the Orples affected people mentally as well. So that's that! Reviews welcome! lol. If I can think of an idea there might be a sequal to this. (ideas also welcome in your review)_


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